Rector and Deans
Rector
Ingmar Björkman
Professor Ingmar Björkman is Rector for Hanken School of Economics. Professor Björkman took office on 1 August 2022 and the term of office is five years.
The rector leads Hanken's operations, and is responsible for the economical, efficient and effective discharge of the university mission. The rector appoints most of the faculty and staff, admits students for degree studies, and decides on matters that, in accordance with Acts, Decrees or internal regulations, are not to be decided by any other administrative body of the School.
Ingmar Björkman comes from Aalto University's School of Business where he worked as dean of the School in 2012-2019 and as professor of international business management since 2016. Professor Björkman has also previously been employed at Hanken between the years 1983-2011, including positions as professor and dean. He also has prior international experience from visiting positions at, among others, Stanford University in USA and INSEAD in France.
Deans
Hanken currently has three deans with different areas of responsibility: research (Gyöngyi Kovács), international relations and rector's representative in Vaasa (Sören Kock), and education (Mika Gabrielsson). The deans' term of office is 1.8.2023-31.7.2026. The deans are members of the management team. Hanken also has two associate deans; Nikodemus Solitander is responsible for sustainability and Kaj Storbacka is responsible for executive education and corporate relations.
The Board appoints the deans and the areas of responsibilities are proposed by the rector.
Gyöngyi Kovács
Dean of Research
Erkko Professor in Humanitarian Logistics, and the Subject Head of Supply Chain Management and Social Responsibility
As Dean of Research, Gyöngyi Kovács supports the development of research, the processes of external research funding, research ethics, research data protection and open science, the coordination of Hanken's research groups, the recruitment and tenure track processes for faculty, and the marketing of the doctoral programme. She is Chair of the Research Council and a member of the Research Ethics Committee.
Professor Kovács' own research focuses on humanitarian logistics and sustainable logistics. Professor Kovács is an active researcher and one of the founders of the HUMLOG Institute.
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Mika Gabrielsson
Dean of Education
Mika Gabrielsson, Professor of Marketing
As Dean of Education, Mika Gabrielsson leads the development of the Bachelor's and Master's programmes. Mika Gabrielsson is Chair of the Education Council and the Board of Directors of the Centre for Languages and Business Communication.
Professor Gabrielsson's research interests are the internationalisation of companies and their marketing strategies.
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Sören Kock
Dean of International Relations and rector's representative in Vaasa
Sören Kock, Professor in Management and Organisation
Sören Kock is rector's representative in Vaasa and his tasks include leading the development of internationalisation at Hanken. He is also responsible for Hanken's engagement in the European university ENGAGE.EU.
Professor Sören Kock’s main research interests are coopetition, international entrepreneurship, and business networks. His research has been published in e.g. Industrial Marketing Management, International Small Business Journal, International Business Research, The Journal of Business and Industrial Marketing, European Journal of Marketing and Competitiveness Review.
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Kaj Storbacka
Associate Dean of Executive Education and Corporate Relations
Kaj Storbacka, Hanken Foundation Professor
As Associate Dean of Executive Education and Corporate Relations, Kaj Storbacka supports the development of Hanken’s corporate relevance and alumni relations, the fundraising activities, the operations of Hanken Business Lab and Quantum, the continuous development of the EMBA program and executive education, and the improvement of integration of academic scholarship with practical experience.
Kaj has made a career out of working on the borderline between academic and applied research within marketing and strategic management. He has more than 35 years of experience as a strategy consultant to global companies in finance, media, travel, retail, utility, manufacturing, and telecommunications.
His research interest focuses on market and business model innovation, market-shaping strategies, and solution business transformation. His research has been published in journals such as Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Industrial Marketing Management, Journal of Business Research, European Journal of Marketing, and British Journal of Management.
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Nikodemus Solitander
Associate Dean of Sustainability
Nikodemus Solitander, Researcher in Supply Chain Management and Social Responsibility
As Associate Dean of Sustainability, Nikodemus Solitander leads the sustainability work at Hanken. Solitander is the Chair of Hanken's sustainability committee and coordinates Hanken's study programme in sustainability.
Nikodemus Solitander's main research interests are sustainability, business and human rights, and sustainable business education. He has a strong interest in pedagogical development and methods.
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